Origami is the art of folding paper into fun figures, interesting designs, and works of art. This ClickScholar-recommended site is one of the best origami sites we’ve seen. It was designed by graphic designer and artist, Fumiaki Shingu, as a way to share the magic of Japanese origami with people worldwide.

When you get to the site you’ll see a menu of origami possibilities that include folding paper into:

Sea Creatures

Bugs

Fruits & Vegetables

Animals & Birds

Sweets & Food

Paper Air Planes

Holiday Decorations

Alphabet Letters

Numbers

Furniture

Clothes

Using Newspaper for Origami

And there is even a section of “Easy Origami” for beginners! Click on any one and a new screen opens with a selection of designs. Click on a design of interest, and a new page opens with complete instructions and animated illustrations that simplify the whole process. Anyone can learn the art of origami with the use of this website!

This website is part of a research project developed by the University of Michigan with resources and activities to improve learning science with a focus on biology and biodiversity. It’s designed for classroom use, but it’s a terrific resource for homeschoolers as well!

When you get to the site use the horizontal menu near the top of the screen to explore:

Critter Catalog – Discover an array of vertebrates such as mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Then check out the invertebrates that include mollusks, insects, arachnids, myriapods, and crustaceans. Information here includes pictures, specimens, sounds the critters make, and scientific classification.

Field Guides – While there is a focus here on the wildlife habitat of Michigan, you’ll find terrific all-around information under “Tracks and Sign” that includes keys to animal tracks, marks left by animals chewing, biting, and rubbing, things animals build, eggs, and things animals leave behind.

Resources – You’ll find a terrific archive of links to websites about animals and biodiversity. Don’t miss the “Multimedia Resources” in the “Links for Teachers” section that include links to sites with ideas for curricula.

With the Missouri State Parks website, take virtual tours of many of the parks.

After arriving at today’s link, use the list of parks and historical sites to choose a location to visit. When the page opens, look to the right at “The Park File” and select “Park Video”, “Photo Gallery”, or “Virtual Tour” to view images, videos and/or interactive 360° images of locations.

In addition to the virtual tours, there is a lot more information available in “The Park File” for many of the parks such as:

General park information such as visiting hours, weather, directions, maps, and basic information about the park

Bird Checklist – a downloadable list of birds spotted at the park

Plant and Animal List – another downloadable list of animals and plants in the area

Natural Features – interesting things to look for

Park History

And much more

There are 56 parks and 35 historical sites to explore so be sure to bookmark this site to come back to from time to time. (Please note that some park pages are still “under construction.”)

This commercial website specializes in travel to Africa and includes a terrific, free virtual safari of East Africa and southern Africa using photos and interactive 360° panoramas of wildlife and landscapes.

When you get to the website you’ll see a picture of a lion. Click on the words, “To The Gallery” located below the lion. A new page opens with a menu of the photo gallery that you will use to take this virtual safari that includes:

If you click on any item on the menu a new page opens to photographs with descriptions in GERMAN. If you don’t read German – don’t worry. You can easily translate each page into English with a Google translation service located in very small print at the bottom of each page. Just click on the words “Translate this page into English” and the Google application works its magic so that you get the full benefit of the picture and the descriptive text.

If you enjoy the virtual field trip, you can also virtually explore the lodges and camps that are available to those who go on a real safari using the travel services of Bwana Mitch.

Take a peek into the world of animals with these web cams at the larger Explore website.

There are over 100 cams to choose from sorted by type:

Bears, polar bears, and pandas

Birds

Hawaiian islands

Oceans

Dogs

Today’s link opens to the bird cams, but using use the upper scrolling picture menu to select a different category of interest.(Please note that some topics only provide films or are social/political issue related, so as always preview this site prior to allowing children to visit.) Once you decide what category to explore, if there are web cams available, use the text link “All Live Cam Results” to see all the available streams.

A sampling of the animal cams available include:

Great gray owl nest in Montana

Hummingbird fountain in La Verne, California

Pacific Walrus in Round Island, Alaska

Bison in Val Marie Saskatchewan, Canada

Tundra buggy polar bear Churchhill, Manitoba, Canada

African wildlife in Kenya, Africa

Ouwehand waterfall polar bears in Rhenen, Netherlands

Most topics also provide films and photos to further enhance your visit and discovery. This website provides a wonderful window into the animal world we might not ordinarily get to see.